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Gulling the Poultry 

Flock 

Why, When, and How 




The Hen That Lays is the 
Hen That Pays 



UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 
tt 

DEPARTMENT CIRCULAR 31 



Contribution from the Bureau of Animal Industry 
Animal Husbandry Division 



Washington, D. C. Issued May 2, 1919; reprint, October, 1919 



WASHINGTON : GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE : 1913 



Monograph 



LIBRARY OF CONGRfebS I 

OCT 3 1S33 

1,1 



SF+81 
■UtG 



CULLING THE POULTRY FLOCK. 



WHY CULL? 



Intelligent culling of the poultry flock is of the utmost importance 
for success in poultry keeping. Culling serves three purposes : First, 
it increases the profits by insuring that the feed will be consumed 
by the better-producing hens, the profit payers, and will not be con- 
sumed by the poor producers which are kept at a loss. Second, it 
makes it possible to save those best suited for breeders, both on 
account of their better production and on account of their superior 
strength and vitality, which have enabled them to stand up under the 
severe strain of heavy laying. Third, weeding out the poor hen 
gives those left more room and a better chance. Where trap nesting 
is practiced, culling is a comparatively simple process, as the recorded 
egg record enables one to determine whether a hen should be retained 
or discarded. 

WHEN TO CULL. 

Culling should be continuous throughout the year. This continu- 
ous culling should consist in weeding out, when discovered, any hen 
which is sick, which is very thin, or which shows evidences of non- 
production, weakness, or poor vitality. 

The whole flock should also be given a careful and systematic 
culling at least once during the year. The hens should be handled 
individually and gone over carefully with the object of dividing them 
into two lots, one the better producers and the other the poorer pro- 
ducers. From the better producers it is also desirable to pick out 
and band or otherwise mark as many of the best as will be needed 
for breeders. Market those selected as the poor producers. Save for 
laying and breeding those selected as the better producers. 

When a single systematic culling is made, the best time to do it is 
in August or September. At this time it is easier to form a close 
estimate of the relative value of a hen as an egg producer and to 
weed out the poor producers. Hens which show indications of lay- 
ing at this time are those which on the average have been the better 
producers for the year. It must be remembered, too, that the better 
producers during the first laying year are usually those which will 
be the better producers in subsequent years. Hens showing indica- 
tions of having been good producers throughout the year should be 

133626°— 19 3 



4 CULLING THE POULTRY FLOCK. 

retained for the next year regardless of their age, but relatively few 
hens will prove to be profitable producers beyond their second laying 
year if of the heavier breeds, such as the Plymouth Rock, Rhode 
Island Red, Wyandotte, or Orpington, or beyond their third laying 
year if of the lighter breeds, such as Leghorn, Ancona, or Minorca. 
Preliminary culling during July is also desirable in order to elimi- 
nate hens which have started to molt and have stopped laying at that 

time. 

HOW TO CULL. 

In going over the entire flock for the purpose of culling there are a 
number of points or characteristics which should receive special at- 
tention in selecting the layers from those which are not laying at the 
time mentioned. If the different characteristics or several of them in 
the case of any individual agree as indicating good production or 
poor production, selection is comparatively accurate. If they do not 
agree, judgment must be used in deciding which should receive the 
greatest weight. The following are the main points to consider : 

Molt. — This is probably the most valuable and most easily applied 
test of production. Hens cease laying completely or almost com- 
pletely during the molt. The better producers lay late in the fall, 
and therefore molt late. Late molters also molt rapidly as a rule, 
while early molters molt slowly. Therefore, save the hens which 
have not molted by August or are only just beginning to molt late 
in September or in October, and discard those which have finished 
molting or are well into the molt. The hens which molt latest, pro- 
vided they are otherwise desirable, are the best to save for breeders. 
A hen which has not molted at that time is characterized by soiled and 
worn or broken plumage, which is especially evident in the tail plum- 
age, whole those molted or molting show clean, fresh plumage or pin- 
feathers or partly grown feathers. Culling the early molters just as 
soon as they begin to molt is one of the easiest ways to weed out the 
poor layers. 

Shank color. — In those breeds having yellow legs, the color fades 
out slowly as the laying season advances. The rapidity and degree to 
which the yellow color is lost depends to a considerable extent upon 
the heaviness of laying. The yellow color goes out from the scales on 
the front of the shanks first and finally from the scales on the rear. 1 
Hens on grass range do not lose the shank color so quickly or com- 
pletely as those in bare yards. Some soils also tend to bleach the 
color of the legs. Hens showing strong or medium yellow-shank 
color in August and September are usually poor layers, but occa- 
sionally poor layers may show pale or white shanks. A sick hen or 

1 Taken from an outline on judging fowls for egg production, prepared at a judging 
school held at Cornell University. 



CULLING THE POULTRY FLOCK. 5 

one in poor condition may also show pale shanks. When hens stop 
laying they begin to regain the yellow-shank color. Hens which have 
been broody and are therefore not laying, may show more or less yel- 
low in shanks, but if they are not molting should not be discarded on 
that account. In breeds such as the Rhode Island Red where the 
shanks may show horn color as well as yellow, the horn must not be 
confused with the yellow. The rear and sides of the shank show 
little of this horn color. 

Beak color. — In breeds having yellow beaks, the same principle 
applies as in the case of the yellow shanks. However, the color is 
lost from the beak more quickly than from the shanks and is also 
regained more quickly. The lower beak bleaches faster than the 
upper, but may be used where the upper is obscured by horn or 
black. 1 

Vent color. — In yellow-skinned breeds the yellow color of the skin 
immediately about the vent is quickly lost with laying, and is quickly 
regained after laying ceases. White or pink vent color generally 
indicates that the hen is laying, while a yellow vent means that the 
bird is not laying. 

Appearance of vent. — The vent of a hen laying heavily is large, 
expanded, and moist, while that of a hen not laying is comparatively 
small, hard, puckered, and dry. 

Comb. — When a hen is laying or about to lay her comb is waxy, 2 
full of blood, and red in color. When not laying, the comb is smaller 
and shrunken, paler or duller red in color, comparatively hard, and 
covered with whitish scales. A dark or bluish color usually indicates 
sickness. The changes in the wattles and ear lobes are similar to those 
of the comb, but not so marked. It is necessary to keep in mind the 
difference in size of comb of the various breeds. 

Pelvic bones. — As a hen stops laying there is a tendency for her 
to take on fat. This is noticeable in examining the pelvic bones, the 
two bones which can be felt as points on either side of the vent. 
When the hen is laying, these bones are comparatively thin and 
flexible. When she is not laying, they feel thicker and less flexible, 
due to the fat which has accumulated there. Often poor producers 
are somewhat beefy in type and, therefore, show stiffer, thicker pelvic 
bones even when in laying condition than do good producers. The 
spread or distance apart of these pelvic bones is also a valuable indica- 
tion of whether the hen is laying. When laying they are wider apart 
than when the hen is not laying. The spread can be roughly measured 
for practical purposes by determining how many fingers can be laid 
between the bones. If the spread measures two fingers or less, the 

1 Taken from an outline on judging fowls for egg production, prepared at a judging 
school held at" Cornell University. 

2 Cornell Extension Bulletin 21. 



6 CULLING THE POULTRY FLOCK. 

probabilities are that the hen is not laying, while if the spread is 
greater, she is probably laying. 

Distance from pelvic bones to keel bone. — A hen laying well is a 
good eater. Her intestines are, therefore, fuller and more distended, 
and require more room than when she is not laying and not eating 
so much. 1 When laying, the ovary and oviduct are of greater size 
and require more room. To provide this extra room the distance 
from the rear end of the keel to the pelvic bones increases, with a 
consequent increase in the size of the abdomen. A spread of 3 or 
more fingers in the smaller breeds, such as the Leghorn, and 4 or more 
fingers in the larger breeds, such as the Plymouth Rock, indicates 
that the hen is in a laying condition. A spread of less than 3 fingers 
in the smaller breeds and less than 4 fingers in the larger breeds 
indicates that she is not in a laying 'condition. The comparative size 
or spread of the abdomen of hens in laying condition, together with 
the length of the keel, is a measure of value with respect to the 
capacity or ability to lay. Mere spread of abdomen may be mislead- 
ing, as a hen with a short keel may show a large spread of abdomen 
and yet have poorer capacity than one with a longer keel but smaller 
spread of abdomen. 

Flexibility of abdomen. — When the hen is laying the greater size 
of the abdomen, together with the lessened tendency to accumulate 
fat at this point, results in a soft, flexible abdomen, suggesting, when 
handled, the texture of a partly milked-out udder of a cow. When 
laying has ceased, the abdomen grows smaller, or contracts, and it 
feels, when handled, harder and less flexible. 

In culling the flock remember that it is safer to depend upon the 
agreement of a combination of several characteristics rather than to 
select by any one alone. It is also necessary to give consideration 
to the general condition of the flock and the care and feeding which 
they receive and the conditions under which they are kept. For ex- 
ample, a flock which has free range and plenty of green feed may 
have produced well and still show considerable yellow-shank color. 
In culling such a flock not so much weight should be given the pres- 
ence of yellow in shanks as in one which has been confined to a bare 
yard and where in consequence a general paler leg color has resulted. 
With this in mind — 

CULL THESE HENS. 

Sick, weak, lacking vigor, inactive, poor eaters, early molters, 
with small, puckered, hard, dry vents; with small, shriveled, hard, 
scaly, dull-colored combs; with thick or coarse, stiff pelvic bones, 
that are close together, small spread between pelvic bones and rear 

1 Cornell Extension Bulletin 21. 



CULLING THE POULTKY ELOCK. 7 

end of keel, and hard, small abdomen. In breeds with yellow skin 
and shanks, the discarded hens should also show yellow or medium- 
yellow shanks and yellow beaks and vents. 

SAVE THESE HENS. 

Healthy, strong, vigorous, alert, and active ; good eaters ; not molt- 
ing or just beginning to molt in September or October; with large, 
moist vents; with full, red combs; thin, pliable pelvic bones well 
spread apart, widespread between pelvic bones and rear end of keel, 
and large, soft, pliable abdomen. In breeds with yellow skins and 
shanks, the hens saved should also show pale or white shanks, and 
pale or white beaks and vents. 



• j ' i 



KEEP STANDARDBRED 
POULTRY 



Standardbred poultry is more uniform in size, 
type, and color. 



Standardbred poultry is more attractive in appear- 
ance and appeals more strongly to purchasers of 
stock and eggs. 



Standardbred poultry offers a greater combination 
of practical and utility qualities suitable to the needs 
of the farmer and poultry keeper. 



Standardbred products are more uniform in qual- 
ity, are in greater demand, and bring better prices. 



Standardbred poultry means greater success and 
better profits. 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



002 851 188 7 



